Harry Yates

Harry Alexander Yates, AFC (1 August 1896 – April 1968) was a Canadian pilot and chiropractor. He was best known for flying Lawrence of Arabia and Harry St. John Philby to Cairo, breaking a speed record for that flight.

Early life Yates was born on 1 August 1896 in London, Ontario. As a young boy he and his family moved to Toronto when his father George was offered a job with the Toronto Globe. They later moved to Ottawa, where George became private secretary to Prime Minister Robert Borden. Harry attended Ottawa Collegiate Institute and joined cadets, learning telegraphy and automobile repair. He was nicknamed "Steamboat" because of his size: he was and . He was the second pilot chosen to fly the newly designed Handley Page (HP) bomber, and also flew thirty other types of aircraft for over 400 total hours during his career. After the armistice, he was chosen to convey delegates, government ministers, and members of the royal family from London to the Paris Peace Conference. He set a record for multi-engine flight from London to Paris in early June 1919. He continued to hold a civilian pilot's license until 1951.